Distracted
by LieutenantBear
Summary: Sulu and Chekov are study buddies, but it could very well become something more than that. Rated T for language and alcohol/underage drinking. Minor character death(s). Positive reviews are ALWAYS appreciated :)
1. Chapter 1 - Studying

"Pavel, as much as I enjoy your presence, I'm trying to read," Sulu said, lowering his PADD. He was trying to study for an exam.

Fifteen-year-old Pavel Chekov was smiling at him, his head cocked to the side like a confused pug. "What did I do? I've been quiet the whole time,"

"Yes, but could you not sit on top of me?" Sulu asked. It wasn't because Chekov was heavy, because he really wasn't. It was because his cute little face and his cute little curls were very distracting when he was giggling. Plus, he was way more amusing than a technical journal, and it just wasn't fair.

"No, I'm staying here," Chekov said, claiming Sulu's body as his territory.

"Pavel, come on,"

"Nyet," Sulu sat up and Chekov poked his chest. "Your chest is very firm," He said, randomly.

"Great," Sulu said, lifting the young cadet off of him and put him in a chair. "Now stay," He said to Chekov as if he were a disobedient puppy. He laid back down on his bed.

Chekov got right back up, but this time, sat next to Sulu instead of on top of him. He put his head on Sulu's chest and listened to what his companion's heart sounded like. It started beating very fast, but after a while, regulated itself.

"Pavel, I need to-"

"Shhh…" Chekov whispered. "I'm listening to your heart,"

"Why?"

"Because I want to,"

Sulu resisted the urge to stroke his lovely curls. "What's it saying?"

"It's going very fast. Are you nervous?" He tapped his fingers at the same rate Sulu's heart was beating. "You've got to calm down."

Sulu laughed. "Sorry," Chekov kept his head on Sulu's chest. Just as Sulu was about to suggest he went to bed because it was late, he heard Chekov start to snore. He couldn't resist anymore, and started petting his hair. Chekov didn't wake up, he was a heavy sleeper. "I can't be in love with a little kid," He whispered to himself. "He's so… _Small_ and innocent." God, he wanted to kiss him so badly, it was actually, physically hurting him. He felt like a terrible person. Being attracted to someone so young at his age. He was absolutely NOT going to start crying. At least… Not with Chekov still there.

Chekov stirred a little in his sleep. The corners of his mouth twitched a little. He was smiling in his sleep! Now Sulu _definitely_ couldn't wake him to tell him to go back to his own quarters. That would just be cruel. He took a deep breath and picked up his PADD again and started to read...


	2. Chapter 2 - Ticklish

"Er… Good morning Pavel," Hikaru said, stretching awake. Pavel had his face in a pillow and made a small sound. Hikaru pulled the pillow out from underneath him, and Pavel made another noise. "Come on, we have classes," He noticed his PADD, which had fallen off his bed when he and Pavel had fallen asleep. "Shit! My exam!" He jumped up and pulled on his boots. He didn't bother changing his clothes, he was in the same clothes as yesterday. He just hoped nobody noticed, because they'd probably figure that he hadn't showered.

Pavel had already fallen asleep again.

Hikaru quickly combed his hair and shook Pavel's shoulders again. "Pavel, the next time you fall asleep, I'm going to throw a book at your head!" He said.

"That's not nice," Pavel muttered, sitting up. "What time is it?"

"Time for you to leave, and go back to your own room so you can get dressed and go to class. I'm late for my exam already," He handed Pavel's things to him and hurried him out the door.

Pavel came into Hikaru's room again later the same day. "Hi. How did your exam go?"

"I don't know. Pretty sure I bombed it," Hikaru said, turning around in his desk chair. He was still smiling.

"Bombed?" Pavel asked. "That is bad, yes?"

"Bombed means failed. I think I failed it," Hikaru said. He couldn't help but smirk at Pavel misunderstanding the use of the word.

Pavel lowered his head. "It's my fault, isn't it? I should not have fallen asleep in your bed. That was very wrong of me. I should have left as soon as you told me you were studying."

"It's not your fault, Pavel," Hikaru said. "It's just, I hate studying. Plus, when you fell asleep on me, you were just so warm and cuddly that I fell asleep, too." He laughed a little.

Pavel tilted his head to the side a little. "Warm… And cuddly?" He asked. "Is that a compliment?"

Hikaru smiled. "I think I was just stating a fact, but I guess it is. I'd like to be warm and cuddly, but I'm all hard and tough."

"I think you're cuddly," Pavel said.

"Me? No. Not cuddly. I'm too muscley to be soft," Hikaru said. He wasn't trying to brag or anything, he really was. But without further warning, Pavel poked him in the belly.

Hikaru squirmed a little and laughed. "You feel cuddly there," Pavel said, poking him again.

Hikaru laughed harder. "Stop it, Pavel!"

Pavel paused. "Are you… Ticklish?"

"No!" Hikaru said. "N-no, I just wasn't expecting you to do that! Don't do it again!" Pavel smiled devilishly and poked him again and again until he was begging him to stop. "Pavel, quit it! I'm going to pull a muscle or something!"

"You say you're too muscley to be soft, but you giggle like a kitten!" Pavel said.

"Stop! Please, Pavel!" Hikaru could hardly breathe. "Please… Mercy!"

"A real warrior shows no mercy!" Pavel said. But he wasn't expecting Hikaru to tickle him back. "Eeek! Do not touch me theeeere! I'm very, very ticklish there!"

Hikaru had tickled Pavel's neck, and Pavel just lost it. Before long, they both waved their metaphorical white flags. "No more tickling, okay?"

Pavel was laying on the floor of Hikaru's room, face down, and completely out of breath. "Agreed," He panted. "But you do giggle like a kitten. Sorry."

"That's okay. You don't even giggle. You just squeak. You have a very mouse-like squeak."

Pavel nodded. "Yeah," He yawned. His eyes were starting to close.

"Don't go falling asleep in here again. Or else I'll have to carry you back to your room."

"Mm? Da…" Pavel said. Sometimes when he was very tired, he forgot what English was and switched back to Russian. He was pretty much already asleep. It wasn't even late. It was, like, seven thirty. But he couldn't have Pavel sleeping on his floor (or in his BED) every single night. He picked up the teenager and carried him to his room.

By the time they were halfway there, Pavel had gotten one leg around him, one arm around him, and had his head on his shoulder. Hikaru wasn't bothered by it. He loved it. He wanted it every second of the day.

He laid Pavel down on his bed, and pulled the blankets over him. He stopped and just watched him for a moment. Not in a creepy way, in a cute, longing way. Finally, after kissing the Russian's cheek (Because, what the heck? Hikaru knows he wants to, and he's sleeping, he won't remember) he dimmed the lights and left.

After making sure Hikaru was truly gone, Pavel opened an eye, then both eyes, and sat up. He smiled at the door, kind of wishing Hikaru would come back. He felt his cheek where Hikaru had kissed him. _Kissed him._ He'd wondered if the lights had been low enough so Hikaru couldn't see him blushing_._

Of course Pavel faked it. He couldn't fall asleep until at least ten thirty. Hikaru had just carried him back to his room, tucked him into bed, and kissed him goodnight. It was like a teenage girls dream, except he was a boy. So it was like a slightly feminine teenage boy's dream.

Pavel didn't care what time it was. He fell asleep dreaming of Hikaru.


	3. Chapter 3 - Russian Vodka

Pavel woke up first, and he could already feel the headache. He remembered only a few things from the night before, none of which were really worth remembering. But he did notice that he had no shirt on, and he was on top of his friend, who was also half-naked. Hikaru started to wake up, probably from Pavel sitting on his stomach area, which was very sensitive at the moment, Pavel had noted. He slowly climbed off of his friend, and let him wake up. "Pavel? Oh, there you are. Ugh… I can't believe I let you talk me into this..." Hikaru didn't dare sit up, just folded his arms over his face. "Happy birthday." Pavel's head started spinning, and he clutched the blankets, but fell backwards off the bed anyway. "Ouch." "Y'okay?" Hikaru asked. "Uhm… Yes," Pavel said. But he really couldn't tell, because he felt terrible anyway. "Are you alright today? I was not aware that the vodka was that strong." "Yeah, I'm okay. Say, do you remember last night?" Hikaru asked. Pavel didn't have the energy to even think about getting up. "Eh, no. I remember being really happy, though." "Yeah, me too." Hikaru carefully lifted himself out of Pavel's bed. "Have… Have you seen my shirt? I think I may have thrown it somewhere… Oh! There it is." He noticed it on one of Pavel's bookshelves. "Why… Where's your shirt?" "Don't know," Pavel said, yawning. He curled up on the floor. "Too tired to go look for it." Hikaru sighed and picked up the Russian from the floor and put him back on his bed. "Rest for now, you little party animal. And happy birthday. We never drink that again until you turn eighteen, you hear?" "Okay, Hikaru." Pavel smiled and went back to sleep within two minutes of Hikaru sitting on the edge of his bed. Hikaru took his jacket and slipped it over his shoulders before trying to steadily walk back to his room. Alcohol was allowed on Academy grounds, but it wasn't really appreciated. When he finally returned to his familiar bed, he flopped down on it and fan his hands over his face. Every part of him felt frighteningly numb. "Last night was… Oh, God. I don't even know." Hikaru hadn't mentioned to Pavel that he happened to remember every detail of what had happened the previous night. He wouldn't have minded it of they had been sober, but when they were drunk… when they were _that drunk_… He didn't know whether to trust it or not. At this point Hikaru didn't know if he should ask, or not. If he did, Pavel really wouldn't know what he was talking about. He'd said he didn't remember. All he could do for now was stare at the ceiling and hope it'd spit out an answer for him. But the same thing just kept crawling through his mind… _I can't believe he kissed me… _ Once Pavel was sure Hikaru was gone, he got up and locked the door, and flopped down on his bed, anxiously running his fingers through his soft but tangled hair. It was times like this when his hair was calming to him. For some reason it just relaxed him at times like this. Pavel felt horrible in every possible way he could think of. There wasn't a muscle in his body that didn't feel like it was throbbing with pain. He looked over at the bottle, which was pretty much empty, at least from what he could see. He was somewhat used to the drink. He could only imagine how Hikaru's body was handling the foreign contaminant. Hikaru had told him to rest, but he just couldn't. He was surprised Hikaru didn't realize he was pretending to sleep. He'd also faked not being able to recall events from the previous night. He remembered everything. He'd felt like a terrible liar for this. Hikaru would probably not be happy that Pavel had lied. His hands and feet were twitching with restlessness. He couldn't suppress his anxiety. All he could do was pace, and pace, and think, and pace. He needed to go for a run, but after drinking like that, he'd probably throw up or pass out. He wished he could have a treadmill in his room so he could at least walk it no matter how much walking or running or pacing he could do, he couldn't stop thinking the same thought that kept creeping across his mind… _I can't believe he kissed_ me... 


	4. Chapter 4 - Sulu's Plants

Pavel was trying to sleep off the lingering effects of the vodka from the previous night, when someone rang his door chime. He got up, even his body hurt from his stomach to his head. He should probably be drinking more water, but then he'd have to get up and go get it, which wasn't worth his time.

Hikaru stood outside Pavel's room with a little red box. "Hi, Pavel… Um… I forgot to give this to you last night with all the crazy stuff that happened… You're sure you, uh, don't remember?"

"Some things have come back to me," Pavel said, taking the little box. "Crazy night, huh?"

"Yeah, you're telling me," Hikaru said. "I was throwing up vodka all over my bed this morning."

Pavel's face turned red. "I… That was a stupid idea," He said. "I should not have made you sick."

"I don't mind. It wasn't your fault. That's what being a teenager's about, anyway. We had fun while it lasted," Hikaru said. "So… What came back to you about last night?"

"Oh, yes, that…" Pavel said. "Well… I remember that you were talking about plants, and you said that one was a carnivore that was so big it could eat a full-grown human."

Hikaru blushed. "Yeah… Um… That may have been an exaggeration…"

"And then you said you know how to take care of it, though. And I said you were very brave," Pavel said. "And then…" Pavel's face turned the cutest pink color Hikaru had ever seen.

"And then you kissed me," Hikaru said.

Pavel's eyes widened. "No! I did not kiss you! You kissed me!"

"No I didn't!" Hikaru said.

"But you did!" Pavel said, smiling. "And I think you liked it."

"Pavel, I would never… I wouldn't kiss you!" Hikaru said.

Pavel suddenly looked upset. "Never? Why?"

"B-because… I don't know… I just can't!" Hikaru said.

"You think I'm weird, too?" Pavel asked.

"What? No, of course not. I just didn't know if you liked me, so… I wouldn't kiss you unless I knew you liked me, too…" Hikaru stuttered.

"Too?" Pavel repeated. "You mean… You like me?"

"Well, yes. I mean… No… Not of you don't want me to, but if you do then… Ugh, I'm really bad at this."

"No, it's okay, it's cute," Pavel said. "I don't care that you kissed me, or if I kissed you, or if we just kissed each other. I just wanted to know if it meant anything."

"Well," Hikaru said. "I don't know about you, but it meant a lot to me."

Pavel's mouth hung open for a moment, and he couldn't think of a response. "Uhm… Oh. Wow. You… Thanks!"

Hikaru smiled. "You don't have to _thank_ me," he said. "Come here, you little dork!" He wrapped his arms around Pavel and lifted him up in a bear hug.

"I need to sleep off the rest of that stupid alcohol," Pavel said. "My whole upper half is very sore. I don't know why."

"You need to drink more water, that's why," Hikaru said. He picked him up and carried him to his bed, even though it wasn't far at all from the door. He replicated Pavel a glass of water and two little pills for the pain. "There. Now drink."

Pavel drank a little of the water, but didn't dare try to finish any more because of his upset stomach. "Hikaru," He said. "Tell me more stories about your plants."


	5. Chapter 5 - Giant Glowing Inchworms

"No, wait, don't turn the page yet," Pavel said. He was lying next to Hikaru, who was reading _A Midsummer Night's Dream_ on the floor of his room "I just need to read a few more sentences…"

"Hey, this is my book, and I'm a much faster reader than you, so get over it," Hikaru said. "Or just get your own book. I'm not good at sharing."

"Obviously," Pavel said, sitting up. "I've only gotten to read half of the pages. None of it makes any sense!"

"Pavel, it makes perfect sense, if you'd just read it on your own time," Hikaru said.  
>"Alright."<p>

"Okay, so there's there's these people in Athens, Hippolyta and Theseus-"

"No spoilers! Quiet," Pavel said, covering his ears.

"-and they're supposed to be married," Hikaru said.

"Nooo! No spoiling, Hikaru!" Pavel threw a pillow from the bed at Hikaru's head.

"Alright, as long as you're not reading off my book anymore. That's very annoying," Hikaru said. "You should join a book club."

"No! Those are for girls. I will not do that," Pavel said. "I do not have to be in a girly book club to read good books with people. I can just read with you."

"No you can't," Hikaru said, settling in the corner so Pavel couldn't sit behind him. "I am banning you from sitting behind me and reading my books. You can read them when I'm done."

"Boring," Pavel said. "I'd rather just sit and think." He laid on his back with his legs against the wall, so it looked like he was sitting sideways. "Do you ever do that," Pavel asked. "Do you ever just kinda sit and think about… Stuff."

Hikaru put his book down and narrowed his eyes. "What kinda _stuff_ are you referring to, Pavel?"

"I don't know. Anything. Any kind of fantasies," Pavel said. "I always daydream about navigating on a big starship… Or any ship, really. I'd be happy with any ship. Even a shuttle."

"I don't know. Not really," Hikaru said. "I don't usually have time to do nothing. When I dream, it's involuntary, and I'm usually asleep."

"Have you ever had any weird dreams? Mine are very weird," Pavel said. "I once had a dream that Starfleet was being overthrown by giant glowing inchworms…"

"Um," Hikaru said. "I'm not quite sure how to respond to that."

"I don't think it could happen, but who knows? Maybe inchworms are smarter than we think," Pavel said.

"Yeah," Hikaru nodded. "But weren't the inchworms in your dream also gigantic and glowing?"

"They were really cute," Pavel said. He rolled over onto his belly and stared up at Hikaru. "What do you dream about at night?"

"Ah… I don't know. Stuff."

"Oh, you must remember one funny dream you have had! Please tell me what it was?"

"Nah, I don't really remember any of my dreams. But if I have any tonight, I'll tell you."

"Okay," Pavel said, staring at the ceiling. "You know… We should go on a date. Just you and I."

"A date?"

"A date."

"A date."

"Is that a yes?"

"No…"

"So we won't go on a date?"

"Well, I wanna go on a date, too, but I kinda just like hanging around here," Hikaru said. "Besides, how did our conversation go from dreams to dating, anyway?"

"In my dream we were on a date. You were telling me that the giant inchworms ate your plants."

"What have you been eating that's causing such odd dreams? Have you been drinking before bed?"

"Just a little," Pavel said. "Do you wanna go on a date with me or not? Soon we'll be hopping around the galaxy, and we won't even have time for dates, anyway."

"This is a friendly date, or a romantic one?"

"What do you want it to be?"

"For now, friendly," Hikaru said. "I like to take it slow."

"Alright. For you, it's friendly. For me, it's romantic."

"How does that work?"

"Pretty much the same," Pavel said, shrugging. "Except my thoughts may be a bit dirtier than yours."

"Alright, you kinky little freak," Hikaru said. "How about Friday?"

"It's a date. But… Where?"

"That bar a few blocks away, that's always not too crowded on Fridays."

"Yes, why is it never too crowded on Friday?"

"Because no one wants to be hungover when they go there on Saturday," Hikaru said. "I think it'll be very fun."

"Me too," Pavel said. Hikaru saw Pavel start to picture it. "We're going to get all liquored up, and then I'll-"

"No you won't," Hikaru said. "You're underage. For both of those things."

Pavel crossed his arms. "You're no fun. Plus, how could we get in trouble for that unless someone saw us, or I reported it. It can't happen."

"If someone see's me drunkenly kissing you, then taking you into my room, they'll report it. Plus, I can't have that on my conscience," Hikaru said. "Please tell me you're going to be eighteen soon?"

"I am not even seventeen yet…" Pavel said. "But we've been together for a few months, and… We've never even been on a date! Seems silly to me…"

"Well, on your eighteenth birthday, we'll have a great time. I'll be old by then, though," Hikaru said. "For now, we'll just have a fun little date."

"Alright," Pavel said. He stared at the ceiling a moment, then sighed and looked at Hikaru. "Hello?"

"What?"

Pavel put his hand over his face is if it was painfully obvious what he was forgetting. "You have to ask me on this date. We can't just go."

"Why not?"

"That would be ridiculous. Someone has to ask the other one on the date," Pavel said. "Haven't you had any dates before?"

"First of all, why do I have to be the one asking? And second of all, no, I haven't had any dates before, you're my first date."

"Aw, how sweet! I am your first date!" Pavel giggled to himself. "Maybe I'll be your last first date, too."

"Okay, okay, I haven't been on any dates before, I know that's funny," Hikaru said. He cleared his throat. "Alright. Pavel, will you go on a date with me this Friday?"

"Oh, I don't know," Pavel said, smiling. "Maybe I will. If you're lucky."

Hikaru sat up and took Pavel's hand. "Please, I'll do anything," he said.  
>"I might have better plans," Pavel said.<p>

"Cancel your plans, and I'll give you the second best night of your life," Hikaru said.

"And what would be the first best night," Pavel asked.

Hikaru kissed his hand. "Our wedding night," he said.

"Ooh! What would our wedding be like?" Pavel said, lying on Hikaru's bed. "I think I'd be in white, all white, and you'd be in black and white. It wouldn't be anything really big, just a normal little wedding that all of our parents would go to. And our families. Your sisters would be there. And my little cousins and their children."

"I thought your cousins just got married? How do they have kids already?"

"They don't, but they will by the time we're engaged," Pavel said.

"See, most couples don't talk about their weddings until they're engages," Hikaru said. "It usually makes them uncomfortable, not knowing if they're going to work out over the years…"

"I know we'll work out," Pavel said. "We're perfect together. Plus, we're not like most couples. We're us, and we're totally perfect."

"I know," Hikaru said. "We'll get married soon enough. But I'm proposing, alright? You gotta wait for me."

"Okay," Pavel said. "I'll wait."


	6. Chapter 6 - Casey

It had been two months. They'd been on 11 different dates, not that Pavel was keeping track. (He was, obviously.) All of them had gone perfectly, in Pavel's opinion. He loved being able to talk about it and everything. He wrote all the small details in his journal, (not a diary) which would sometimes just be things Hikaru said or small details about the way he'd smile when Pavel got nervous or the way he would scratch the side of his head when _he_ got nervous.

There were only two people he could talk to about this, however. Hikaru, if he didn't seem annoyed. Most of the time, Hikaru didn't want to discuss dates, he just wanted them to let them happen. He knows what happened, he was there. But Pavel also liked to talk to Casey, his closest friend, along with Hikaru.

Casey was half Betazoid on both her parent's sides. Her mother and father were both half Betazoid as well. She was telepathing, so Pavel often found it hard to think around her, knowing she could tap into his mind any time. She had promised only to hear his thoughts at his discretion, but Pavel still got a bit nervous thinking around her. She had surprisingly bright green eyes, although Betazoid's eyes are typically black or dark brown. Both her parents had dark eye coloring, and it's still a mystery why her eyes turned out to be so light. Her dark hair was cut short, just barely curling below her ears.

"So, why are you looking so pouty today?" Casey sat down next to Pavel on the bench they always sat on every Monday.

"Because," Pavel said. "I've got a zero gravity sim today. I hate those things."

"Oh, yeah. I know you do. Almost everyone hates them," Casey said. "Not me, though. I think they're fun."

"They're completely unnecessary. I mean… What are the odds of the artificial gravity being disabled in combat? It's extremely unlikely."

"Not too unlikely," Casey said. "I mean, if you're on a short mission it's pretty unlikely. But… I have a feeling you'll be doing more than small tasks. One of the brightest minds in Starfleet… You'll do great things, Pavel."

"I don't need to navigate a ship in zero gravity. I won't be doing it any time soon," Pavel said. "And if an opportunity comes along when I need to, I guess I'll figure it out."

"That's not what Starfleet is about, Pavel. You've got to be prepared for everything. Speaking of which, have you taken the Kobayashi Maru test yet?"

"No," Pavel muttered.

"It's usually done in alphabetical order. You should be sometime this week," Casey said.

"Did you take it yet? You have a 'B' name," Pavel said.

"Yeah, yesterday."

Pavel sat up. "How did you do? Is it hard? Do you have any advice?"

"Woah, calm down, kiddo. It's the Kobayashi Maru. Just go with your gut, alright?"

"I do not do that. I have to… Work it out. I have to know that what I'm doing is right the right thing, and the only right thing," Pavel said.

"Well, then that's something you've got to work on," Casey said. "What do you do when something unexpected happens? Sometimes you can't sit around and follow the rules. You go with your instincts and do what you think is right. What'll you when you're the captain of your own ship?"

"I do not want to be a captain. I just want to be a navigator," Pavel said.

"Yes, but if you do become senior navigator, you'll be… The fifth person to have the conn if the captain is away. You never know if he'll give you control."

"Yeah, well… I don't want to think about it. I'm very busy this week. The fifty-first annual Starfleet marathon is on Saturday," Pavel said. "And later today is that stupid zero gravity shuttle simulation."

"The marathon! I almost forgot! Going for two years in a row, are we?"

"I guess. Are you going to be there?"

Casey shook her head. "No, I'm sorry. Tomorrow I leave to visit my parents on Betazed, and I won't be back for eight days. But I'll love hearing about it when I get back. That, and your zero-g simulator test. _And_ possibly the Kobayashi Maru."

Pavel groaned and sank down into the bench. "I can't wait until next it's week."

Pavel was in his quarters, changing into the clothes he wore for running. They were very specific, of course. Pavel liked to compare his time from the previous day, and any change of clothing could throw of the data. He wanted everything to be very precise.

Hikaru came through the doors while Pavel was pulling his shirt on. "Hey," he said, stepping in.

"Hey, get out! I'm not wearing pants," Pavel squealed, his shirt still over his eyes. "Get out of here!"

"Woah, easy there. Just calm down and put your pants on," Hikaru said.

Pavel's cheeks were pink and he quickly pulled his tight shorts on. "What do you want?" He flopped back on his bed.

"Well, I wanted to ask you if you wanted to watch a movie or something tonight," Hikaru said. "I'll let you pick, since I picked last time."

"Sorry, Hikaru. I can't. Have to run," Pavel said, springing up and picking up his water bottle from his desk. "And I also need to study for the Kobayashi Maru test, and set an alarm for five-thirty tomorrow." He kissed Hikaru's cheek and dashed out the door.

"Oh. Alright," Hikaru said. "Have fun."

Pavel was most certainly _not _having fun. He ran for twenty minutes straight, then looked down at his stopwatch. _Not good enough, Pavel. You were much faster last year. You have let yourself get lazy since then._ He started running faster. The treadmills at the Academy were perfect for him. It was like running on a track. So far he was on fifteen laps, which was two laps behind what it usually would be last year. This was not going to get him first place this year.

He kept running and looking down, every twenty minutes, again, and again. Finally, he checked the time on his stopwatch. _Eleven o'clock?! I just got here…_

He picked up his water, which was mostly full. He drank the rest of it, knowing he wouldn't be able to race if he was dehydrated.

When he got off the treadmill, he stumbled and fell. His legs still thought they were on a moving belt. Slowly, he leaned on the wall and allowed himself to adjust to the non-moving floor for the second time today.

The door to his quarters swung open, and he stepped in, only to find Hikaru snoring on his bed. At this point, he really didn't care. He laid down next to him, and Hikaru turned over.

"How was running," he said. It really wasn't spoken as a question, but Hikaru was like that when he was sleepy.

"It was okay," Pavel said. "I have gotten lazy this year."

"No, no. You're not lazy. You've just been busy," Hikaru said. "By the way, I forgot to ask how your shuttle simulator rest went today. You were really worried about that."

"It was terrible, just like I said it would be," Pavel said. "Zero gravity makes me space-sick. Literally. If I had landed the simulation a moment later, I would have been sick."

"Oh, poor Pasha," Hikaru said, kissing his cheek.

"What is with that? Why have you been calling me Pasha? That sounds like a girl's name," Pavel said. "Do I look like a girl to you?"

Hikaru smiled. "You look like a very beautiful girl."

Pavel tried to hide his smile by throwing a pillow at Hikaru's face.


	7. Chapter 7 - I Would Walk 26 Miles

Pavel's face was bright red, and he could feel sweat dripping down the side of his face. There were few people beside him. He knew he was the fastest cadet, circa last year. But now there were new cadets. Bigger, stronger, taller, and quite possibly faster than he was. But he was going to do everything in his power to keep himself on top.

But it was a lot harder this year. His friend was on Betazed, and Hikaru said he had to pick up an old friend from a shuttlecraft early in the morning. He felt bad, not having anyone supporting him, but that wasn't a reason to quit. He couldn't feel sorry for himself now. No, he needed to keep going, nice and steady, so he could win this. He was on the tenth mile, so far, and was feeling… Okay. Pretty good for tem miles.

He also had to be wary of people trying to trip him. It had only happened once last year, but it nearly cost him the race. Plus, he got a terrible abrasion on his knee, as he was running very fast. If you intentionally trip someone, chances are, someone in the crowd will report it, but it'll still put him off. He was always moving his eyes. To the ground, the crowd, in front of him, and occasionally glancing to his side.

He focused on the songs playing in the tiny speakers in his ears. He had never heard any of these songs before. What happened to his playlist? Oh, God, he must have taken Hikaru's instead of his. What if Hikaru found his music? What would he think of him then? _Nope, not focusing on that. Not getting worried right now. Not slowing down. _These weren't bad songs, anyway. But they were old. Pavel could tell, because they didn't sound like they were recorded in modern studios. He pressed the button on the speaker.

"_You are currently listening to: Back In the U.S.S.R. Recorded by The Beatles in the year 1968,"_ the device said.

_Back in the U.S.S.R? That's Russia, isn't it?_ Pavel waited to hear what the song was about. He turned the volume up so all he could hear was the song.

"_Well, the Ukraine girls really knock me out! They leave the west behind. And Moscow girls make me sing and shout…"_

_Got that right._ Pavel said.

"_That Georgia's always on my my my my my my my my my mind!"_

Wow. These people must have been very passionate about Russia. Or, the United Soviet Socialist Republic, as it was called back then. He really liked this song. He forgot he was running for a little bit, which wasn't really good or bad.

_Dear God, just please don't let Hikaru see my personal playlist…_

Hikaru woke up late. Around 10AM. That was pretty late for him. He quickly pulled on his pants and boots and shirt and combed his hair. His room was freezing. He checked the little thermostat on the wall.

"There's no way it's seventy degrees up in here. It feels like fifty," Hikaru said. "It's the same temperature in here as it is outside." He pulled on his red jacket (red was definitely his color. Pavel had told him), and ran out the door. He walked to where the end of the marathon was supposed to be. There was a small crowd of people there. Most people didn't come until around the next few hours when most of the people finish. It was around the second hour, and Hikaru knew that it wouldn't be long before Pavel showed up. The winners of the Starfleet Marathon have never been later than the second hour. It wasn't until his stomach made an embarrassingly loud noise, which made about seven people turn their heads, that Hikaru realized he hadn't eaten breakfast. Hopefully this wouldn't take too long.

Pavel passed the twenty-three mile marker. He was listening to _Another Girl_ and panting. _Just a few more miles and Casey and Hikaru will be so proud of me. I can win this._ He was intimidated when he turned the volume down and heard people running close to him. He sped up a little, hoping to stay on top.

"_She's sweeter than all the girls and… I've met quite a few! Nobody in all the world can… Do what she can do! So now I'm telling you, this time you'd better stop! For I have got…"_

He could sprint the last few miles. That was his plan, anyway. That's what he'd do, then. Time to take it up a notch. The running, and the volume on this song.

Hikaru yawned, but kept his eyes fixed on the street corner. They'd come around it any minute, now, the runners. Then, he saw someone coming down the street. It was Pavel! He was in the lead! But there were quite a few people on his tail. Hikaru stood up and waved his arms around.

Pavel saw Hikaru waving his arms around like a crazy person, and noticed the other runners a few paces behind him. He used the last bits of energy he had to push himself to the _absolute limit_, possibly further, and finish the race before them. _I did it!_

He crossed the finish line, then collapsed into Hikaru's arms. "You came to see me, Hikaru," he said.

"Yeah, I did. And you won!" he said. "I knew you'd win. With or without me here, you'd do great. You're too good for anything but the best."

"Aren't I supposed to be the one that brags?" Pavel panted. Hikaru held him tighter. All that running and then the sudden stop was going to shock his legs like crazy. Pavel was awarded a really nice gold medal for winning, but he really just wanted to rest. He only runs this much, this fast, once a year.

Hikaru carried him back to his room, and stayed with him. Pavel must have slept for hours before waking up and finding Hikaru sitting at his desk, drawing something.

"What are you doing?" he asked, sitting up and wincing. He was already very sore.

"Just drawin' some stuff on your paper," Hikaru said. There were a few little drawings on Pavel's college ruled paper that was usually strictly for essays, but he couldn't say no to Hikaru. One of them looked like a spider, and another one looked like a heart with a bunch of flowers inside it, but he couldn't tell. His vision was all blurry, and he was looking at it sideways.

"Cool," Pavel said. "How long have you been drawing on my paper?"

"Just a few minutes," Hikaru said. "You need to drink more water, now. You've got to rehydrate. You hardly finished half your water bottle during the marathon."

"I know," Pavel said.

"Want anything to eat?" Hikaru asked.

"Nope," Pavel said. "I just wanna rest." He smiled and stretched before slumping back into the pillows again and giggling.

Hikaru climbed into bed next to him. "Me too."

"Hey! This is a single bed. There's only enough room for one person," Pavel said.

"Not of we squish together like this," Hikaru said, hugging Pavel tightly. Pavel playfully fought back, which, in turn, lead to Hikaru tickling the hell out of him until he was nearly crying for him to stop. "Alright, calm down. You should have just let me hug you."

"Maybe I should have," Pavel said.

"I'm really tired," Hikaru said.

"What? You didn't do anything today except watch me run!"

"Hey, I carried you, like, half a mile back here."

"You're crazy," Pavel said, nuzzling his face into Hikaru's chest. "Now hush so I can sleep."

About an hour after Pavel fell asleep, Hikaru was still wide awake. It was only around 2PM. Pavel was sleeping all day, apparently.

"Hikaru?"

"What, Pasha?"

"Hummmmm…"

"Pasha?"

"Mmmm."

Hikaru sat up a little more and looked at Pavel. He was sound asleep.

"Hikaru?"

"Pavel, you're sleep talking."

Hikaru heard his name again, with a bunch of Russian babbling after it.

"I don't know what you're saying about me, but it better be good things, Pavel."

Pavel woke up an hour later, and Hikaru was still awake. "Good morning."

"Good Evening is more like it. Now, you said something about me in your sleep, and it's recorded here, I want you to tell me what you're saying before I translate it, alright? Computer, play back what Pavel said around 2PM."

As the computer played back what Pavel had said, Hikaru watched his face turn white. "I… Uh… It was a dream I was having…"

"Tell me before I translate it," Hikaru said.

"Don't," Pavel said. "Please."

"All you've got to do is tell me," Hikaru said. "I really wanna know."

"No! It…"

"Is it something I shouldn't know, perhaps?"

"No, it's not anything like that, it's just…" Pavel's face turned bright red. "It's very sexual… and I'm afraid you will not understand. Please do not translate it, I will do anything."

"No, that's okay, I understand. I'm just happy it was _my_ name I heard," Hikaru said. He deleted the recording and shut down the computer. "I trust you."

"Thank you," Pavel said. "Maybe one day I'll tell you what that means in English, but for now we'll take it slow, yes?"

Hikaru laughed. "Yes. Very slow. It's not even legal for me to think about stuff like that. You're too young."

"You're not even that much older than me," Pavel said. "You're nineteen."

"Twenty next week," Hikaru said. "And I'm in love with a sixteen year old, ah!"

"I'm trying to get older, but it can only happen as fast as time!" Pavel said. "Our birthdays are not far apart. Soon, I will be seventeen."

"No wodka."

"No, no _vodka_. Not until I am legal, at least."

"That'll be a night to remember, won't it? You'll be legal to drink and have sex with me. I wonder how it'll end…"

"I do not turn into a slut when I drink, Hikaru!"

"How would you know? You drank once. And you're a lightweight."

"You're the one who got sick!"

"Well, when I said sick, I meant like hungover sick, not _dying and everything is killing me because it was my first time drinking_ sick."

"I wasn't like that!"

"I bet you were."

"Well! When I am legal, I challenge you to a drinking contest," Pavel said.

"Challenge accepted," Hikaru said. "Except you've forgotten, I will have had three years of practice by then."

_Didn't think about that._ "I will still beat you at it. That's how tough I am!"

"Alright, Superman. That's a year and a half away. We've both got time."


	8. Chapter 8 - Sewenteen

Pavel had fallen asleep very late. He usually went to bed around midnight, but this time, he couldn't sleep until _three in the morning_. And when Pavel goes to sleep late, he tends to have… Interesting dreams.

"_Bees."_

Why was he dreaming about bees? Who knows?! And who cares, anyway? The bees weren't hurting him. They were just flying around, doing bee stuff, pollinating and what not.

"_Buzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz."_

"_Shut up, stupid bee. Get away from my face."_

Pavel sat down on the imaginary grass. A thought crossed his mind. One that always crossed his mind whenever he was lonely, or even just alone.

"_Where's Hikaru?"_

He looked around. No Hikaru here. Just grass. Miles and miles of grass. And bees. Thousands and thousands and _thousands_ of bees.

"_Bees."_

Pavel started walking around his grassy field.

"_I guess I can't get lyme disease from dream ticks. Oh, you idiot! Don't think about that! Now you're imagining dream ticks, and now you're going to get bitten. Quick! Think of something nice! Like… Hikaru."_

Suddenly, he turned to see his companion a few yards away from him standing in the tall grass. He ran over and hugged him.

"_I like it here. It is lonely without you, though," he said. "Plus there's bees. And dream ticks."_ Hikaru didn't move, though. Pavel touched his face. "_Hello?"_ Something about Hikaru's face was terrifying him. The way his eyes were staring, and the way his mouth was just slightly open, but not going to move. "_Hikaru, stop it. You're frightening me. Say hello to me." _He put his hand on Hikaru's chest. There was nothing. "_Oh my God… Are you dead?"_ He felt Hikaru's neck, looked into his eyes, slapped him in the face before giving up and burying his face into Hikaru's shirt. "_Don't be dead, you're not supposed to die in my dreams. You don't die."_

"Pavel? Wake up, kid. Happy birthday!"

"Aaaaaah! Ah… Oh," Pavel woke up to find Hikaru's face not terrifying the hell out of him. He was standing next to his bed, and he was very much alive. Pavel sighed with relief and leaned forwards, wrapping his arms around Hikaru's middle section and pulling him into the bed with him.

"Oh, okay," Hikaru said. "What's with the screaming? Having more nightmares?" He ran his fingers through Pavel's hair.

"Yeah." Pavel smiled and held onto Hikaru even tighter. Had he been a cat, he would have been purring. Only Hikaru was allowed to touch his hair. And Casey, but she never really did. Pavel wouldn't even let his parents touch it. Well, his mother could, but he didn't like it when she did. She had done his hair when he was little, and he would always cry.

"Well, what was your bad dream about?" Hikaru asked, kissing him on the forehead.

"It doesn't matter," Pavel said. "It doesn't matter, because it's never going to happen. I'm never gonna let it happen. Ever."

"Did something happen to you in it?"

"No."

"Did something happen to me?"

"Maybe…"

"Nothing's gonna happen to either of us. We're invincible," Hikaru said. "Trust me, I won't die. And as long as I'm alive, nothing bad will happen to you, either. I promise."

"Okay," Pavel said.

"So, what do you want to do for your birthday?"

"I'm tired," Pavel said. "You got me too early."

"Early? It's almost noon…"

"No it isn't," Pavel said. He never got up past ten. "I would not be able to sleep for that long, Hiki."

Hikaru pointed to the clock. _11:54 AM._

"Well, I'm still very tired," Pavel said. He burrowed into Hikaru's side and Hikaru pulled a blanket around him.

Pavel woke up without any nightmares about two hours later. Hikaru was still there, looking bored. "Hiki?"

"Yeah, Pasha?"

"Thank you for staying."

"No problem," Hikaru said. "I scanned you while you were sleeping, Pavel. You've got a temperature."

"I've got a what?"

"A fever," Hikaru said, looking nervous. "I think we should take you to a doctor in case you're sick. It won't take long, I promise, okay?"

"No," Pavel said. "It's my birthday! I don't want to waste forty-five minutes at the doctor. It's already two o'clock. We only have half a day left!" He tried to get up. but Hikaru held him down. "I'm taking you to a doctor. Stop worrying. I'll get you the nice doctor that you like from last time. Remember her?"

"Yeah," Pavel said. "Doctor Shah. She was nice."

"Okay. Let's go. If we hurry, and they can get you right back on your feet, we still have a few hours, and if not, we can celebrate it another day, okay?"

Pavel nodded, and Hikaru got him up. "This isn't going to be a very fun birthday," Pavel said.

"Well, it might not be very exciting, but it's the best we can do, alright?" Hikaru said. "Worst case scenario, you've got to sleep it off."

"Um, I think the worst case scenario would be death," Pavel muttered, falling back on the bed.

"You're not going to die, drama queen," Hikaru said. "Now, get up. we've gotta hurry if you want any hope of having a birthday."

"Starfleet medical," Hikaru said. "What a happy place."

One of the doctors happened to hear him. "What are you two waiting on?"

"Doctor Shah," Hikaru said.

"She's not going to be here," the doctor said. "She's on her home planet. Won't be back for three weeks."

Hikaru looked at Pavel. "Sorry, Pavel."

"Come with me," the other doctor said. "I'll have you in and out in fifteen minutes."

"Alright, Pavel, come on. Don't drag your feet, now. He said he'll be done quick, alright? I know he's not Doctor Shah, but that's not a reason to pout." He pulled Pavel by his arm after the doctor.

"What's the problem, kid?"

"I'm just tired. Nothing's wrong."

Hikaru rolled his eyes. "Pavel, you can't lie to the doctors. He's got a fever, and he's been sleeping all day, he didn't even want to get out of bed."

The doctor didn't need to know too much, though. He ran the little scanner over Pavel's body, and soon told them exactly what was wrong.

"Small Deltan infection. Kind of like the flu. There's a really long, complicated name for it, but I don't have time for it," the doctor collected a few pills and gave Hikaru a bottle of them for Pavel to take. "Get him to take these twice a day for five days, alright? He isn't contagious now, but by tomorrow, he will be, for about two days."

"Oh, great," Pavel said.

"What the matter? Did you have a date?"

Hikaru shook his head. "It's his seventeenth birthday. He was really looking forward to celebrating it. What's your name, Doc?"

"Oh, I never told you? I'm Doctor Leonard McCoy," He shook Hikaru's hand. "Today he'll just be tired, but by tomorrow it'll be a lot worse. But as long as he takes the pills, he'll be perfectly fine."

"Alright," Hikaru said. "Thanks so much, McCoy."

"Hikaru," Pavel said, lazily. "What are you doing?"

"Looking up what the symptoms of this infection should be like," Hikaru said. "I wanna know ahead so I can deal with you."

"I'm just tired," Pavel said.

"That's the first symptom. There's a lot more."

"Huh?"

"Let's see… Sweating, soreness, upset stomach, loss of appetite, headaches, dizziness, fainting…"

"Woah! How many more is there!"  
>"Just a few. Pretty bad, huh? Well, you aren't contagious right now," Hikaru said, lying down next to him. "But I'm not kissing you. I don't need to get sick, too."<p>

"That's okay," Pavel said. "_I'll_ just kiss _you_." He grabbed Hikaru and kissed him on the cheek.

"Ach! No! Stop it!" Hikaru tried to push him off, but he couldn't break free of his grip. "Okay, fine. But tomorrow, you do not touch me, got it?"

"Mmm-hmm…"

Pavel woke up miserable. He was too weak to even complain about being sick. His muscles were sore from doing _nothing_, his hair was soaked with sweat, and when he tried to sit up, his head would pound. The only reason he did sit up was to take his shirt off. And his pants, and everything. Even the blankets. He pulled his nice, cool sheets over himself and went back to sleep. Until about five minutes later, when Hikaru woke up.

"Ahh… Morning, Pavel."

Pavel's eyes widened. He'd forgotten Hikaru had fallen asleep there. And now he was naked. Right next to him. "Hikaru…"

"Why'd you take all your clothes off? You hot?"

Pavel pulled the sheets tighter around him. "Yeah," he said. He wasn't actually hot anymore. Suddenly he was freezing. He jumped up and pulled the blankets over himself again. "No. Not anymore…"

"I guess it's starting to kick in a little more, now," Hikaru said. "You've gotta eat something and take your pills, alright?"

Pavel hid under his blankets and groaned. "I'm not hungry, Hikaru."

"Yes you are," Hikaru said. "You just don't know it."

"Noooooo," Pavel whined.

"Pavel, get out from under the blankets," Hikaru said. "If you don't take the pills with food, they'll only make you sicker. And if they don't work, it'll just take longer for you to get better."

"I like it under here. I'm cold," Pavel said. Suddenly, Hikaru pulled the blankets off of him, and Pavel squealed. "Hikaru! Give it back! I've got no clothes on! _Stop looking!_"

Hikaru stood at the foot of his bed, holding up the blankets, and Pavel weakly got up and tried to pull it away from him, but even if he wasn't sick, he wasn't as strong as Hikaru. "I'll give you your blankets as soon as you eat something."

Pavel kept his hands on the blankets, his face inches from Hikaru's. "So, I'm just supposed to stay like this!?"

"Yep," Hikaru said. "You should have just made things easier and cooperated."

"You would be a terrible dad," Pavel said. "Unless this isn't about taking care of me and it's just some sort of sexual thing…"

"Ay!" Hikaru shouted. "No way, you're six- sorry, seventeen. _Barely._ I'm not doing that kinda stuff until _way_ later!" He threw the sheet back over Pavel's head. "You keep your dirty thoughts to yourself, mister." He threw the blanket on the bed next to him. "And I would be an _awesome_ dad, for the record."

Pavel tore the sheet off of himself. He was suddenly very hot again.

"Come on, eat something," Hikaru said. "I'll get you anything you want, but you've got to eat so you can take the pills."

"I can't," Pavel said. "My stomach hurts."

"I know," Hikaru said, pushing a loose curl behind Pavel's ear. "But when you take the pill, you'll feel better, okay?"

Pavel nodded, while using his arm to try to stifle a cough. Unsuccessfully, too. "I know," he finally sighed once his lungs started functioning again. "Just not right now…"

"Pasha, it'll only get worse," Hikaru said. "I'm going out to get you something, and you _will_ eat, or else I'm taking you back to Doctor McCoy, alright?"

"Doctor McCoy. Is he your new boyfriend?"

"Pavel, don't get like that. If I even _look_ at someone else, you get jealous," Hikaru said. "You know… I don't have time for this right now. I can tell you're in a bad mood, so go to sleep, and when I get back, you'll take your pills, and then you can do whatever it is you want to do."

"Okaaaaaaay," Pavel whined.

"Don't be all whiny. I'll get something that'll be easy on your stomach, alright? I know how to take care of my Pasha."

Pavel's body had stopped switching from hot to cold before, and now it was just hot. He fell asleep after a few minutes, with the sheet barely covering his lower half. It had probably been an hour before Hikaru came back. He rolled over onto his back and popped his head up for a second, then lowered it, realizing he didn't have a choice. "Good morning."

"Yeah, good morning," Hikaru said. It was technically the afternoon, but arguing about that was pointless.

"Do you hate me?"

Hikaru turned his head. "What the hell kind of question is that?" he asked. "If I hated you, I wouldn't be here. And I wouldn't have gotten you ice cream and soda."

"How is that stuff supposed to help? I can not have ice cream for lunch, Hikaru, I am a runner."

"First of all, it's not your lunch. It's what you get if you take your pills like a good boy. Second, when you're with me, you're not a runner, you're my Pasha, and you're going to do as I say so you can get better," Hikaru said.

"Okay, okay."

"Alright. I got you granola bars because, honestly, I don't know what the hell you usually eat, and this will be easy on your stomach. And ginger ale, because… Yeah."

Pavel sat up and kissed Hikaru on the cheek. "Thank you, Hiki."

"You're welcome," Hikaru said. "I was gone a while, Pavel. Did you really not think to put any clothes on?"

"I was hot."

"Yeah, I know, but… Not even underwear?"

"I was very hot."

"Whatever you say."

Later that evening, Hikaru got Pavel to eat a little more, and take his pills. Which, of course, knocked him out. He could hardly keep his eyes open. It was only six-thirty, anyway. But Hikaru knew he'd probably sleep through the night, and maybe even late into the morning.

"'Karu?"

"Yeah?"

"D… Dream ticks…"

"What does that mean, exactly?"

"They're… Ticks. But not regular kind. In my dream there was a few dream ticks…"

"Like the bugs? That kind of tick? What're you talking about, crazy?" Hikaru said.

"Bees," Pavel said. "And dream ticks."

"Stop talking about bugs," Hikaru said, shifting nervously. "You're making me itchy all over because now I'm thinking about ticks."

"_Dream_ ticks," Pavel corrected.

"If I have dreams about ticks, I am going to be so mad at you," Hikaru said. Pavel was about to fall asleep on top of him. He had clothes on now, of course. Well, most of his clothes. He had his underwear on. But he was already starting to snore, his nose right next to Hikaru's neck. Every few seconds, he would sigh heavily out of his nose and it made Hikaru slightly uncomfortable.

Hikaru sat up just a little, but that was enough to wake Pavel for a few seconds.

Pavel awoke with a small snort. "Good morning…" he said, then fell right back asleep.

"You say that a lot," Hikaru said. He put his head down and fell asleep with Pavel.

Pavel woke up by himself with nothing but his red robe on. He felt better than he did the day before, but his head still felt heavy, and he was still weak. He picked up his PADD, and there was a message on there from Hikaru.

_Pavel,_

_I've got an exam today. I should be back at 1300 hours. Eat something and take your pills, alright? And if you feel good enough, take a shower and freshen up. Remember to drink a lot of water, too. _

_-Hikaru _

According to his PADD, it was 11:37. He had a little while before Hikaru came back. He decided a shower would definitely be nice, so he had his late breakfast and took his pills as ordered.

His muscles were still a little sore. Especially his legs. Just from supporting his body. He looked in the mirror. Yikes! When _was_ the last time he showered? But the more important question is… How did Hikaru get him into this robe? Did he take off his clothes? Did Pavel change himself, and just black out? No, not likely. Hikaru did this.

He stood under the hot water. He hadn't showered in a while. Hikaru wouldn't let him. He said he might hurt himself. Normally, he'd sing in the shower, but he just wanted to curl up and sleep with Hikaru some more. His eyes struggled just to stay open, and his legs were begging for rest.

Suddenly, the room was swirling around him, and everything started to go dark…

He woke up a while late, and Hikaru was hovering over him. "Hi," he said.

"Pavel," Hikaru said, turning off the water. "You fell, I think. And you nearly flooded the bathroom." Pavel sat up and realized two things. He'd fallen right on the drain, so the water had leaked onto the floor. Also, Hikaru was standing right in front of him. And he was naked.

"Ah!" Pavel grabbed a towel "You, don't look at me yet!"

"Hey, I've seen you naked before, how'd you think I'd get you into your robe this morning?"

"You did do that! I knew it…" Pavel marched out to get dressed.

"So, when will we celebrate your birthday, since you were sick that day?" Hikaru asked, sitting behind him.

"How about we celebrate both our birthdays on the same day?" Pavel said. "It'll be like birthday Christmas."

"Alright, whatever you want," Hikaru said, kissing his forehead. Pavel only put his underwear on, then he sprawled out on the bed, face down.

"So sleepy…" Pavel said. "And my back is so sore… I didn't even use my back all day and it hurts just so much…"

Hikaru smiled and sat on Pavel's back, then gently started to rub his shoulders. "You can just _ask_ you know."

"Mmm…" was the only sound Pavel made, and he soon fell right asleep again. Hikaru only woke him up once so he could take the stupid pills. He wished Pavel didn't need to. He looked so cute when he was sleeping. Like a baby bunny. But he went right to sleep again, afterwards.

When Pavel woke up, he felt like he'd come back from the dead. His head felt normal, nothing hurt anymore, except from where he fell, and he was right next to Hikaru. He tightened his arms around him and kissed tot top of his head.

"Good morning," Pavel said.

"Good morning, Pasha. Feeling much better, I see," Hikaru said. He leaned back in Pavel's bed. They had today off. "You still gotta take those pills for a few days, though."

"That is not a problem," Pavel said. "And now I am seventeen. I hadn't even thought of that!"

"Did you think of what I may have gotten you as a present?" Hikaru asked, biting his bottom lip as Pavel's eyes widened.

"I did not! What is it, Hiki?" He jumped on Hikaru. "Tell me, tell me, _pleeeeease_?"

"Why would I do that? We're not celebrating until my birthday, which is next month," Hikaru said.

Pavel tried to give him that innocent look he would pull to get something he wanted from him. "Please just give me a hint?"

Hikaru tried to look away, but Pavel's eyes were like tractor beams. Once they locked on, they _locked on_. For good. "Fine! One hint," he said. "Okay so, the hint is… It will make you think of me."

Pavel paused. "Did you get me a plant? Don't get me plants, I can't take care of those things, they always die, and then I feel like a terrible person."

"No, that's not it. And no guessing, Pavel. You'll ruin all the fun of a surprise!"

"I hate surprises!" Pavel said.

"Oh, well," Hikaru said. "It's only a month. I'll keep you busy."


	9. Chapter 9 - Drunk Aliens & Sad Russians

"By the way, I didn't tell you this, but I like your music on your earphone player. What is it?"

"I don't know which playlist you were on, but it's mostly classic rock. I didn't think… Wait, when did you have my earphone player?"

"Running the marathon. I must have grabbed yours instead of mine. It was good music. Better than mine, even."

Hikaru shuffled through his drawer and found the other music player. "This one's yours, then?" Pavel nodded and reached for the device, but Hikaru pulled it away and stood up. He put the small speakers in his ears and played the music. "Oh, God! Disco? Why, Pavel, why?" He took to speakers from his ears and gave it back to him. "That's disgusting. Disco."

"I like it," Pavel said.

"Ugh, don't say that. Disco is gross," Hikaru said.

"I like your music, too," Pavel said. "It is very energetic." He half-laughed. "Back in the U.S.S.R. That's where I'm from. Except… It's not the United Soviet Socialist Republic anymore. It's just Russia."

"Yeah, I know. Some of my favorite things are Russian," Hikaru said, lying back on his bed. "You, your accent, your eyes, your lips, your voice…" Pavel blushed and covered his face. "Aww, you're precious. You still get all flustered whenever I talk about you." He motioned for Pavel to lie next to him. "Not too fond of vodka, though. I don't do that."

"I don't think I like it very much either, honestly," Pavel said. "It burns my throat. My father says it is a man's drink, but I am not much of a man to begin with."

"You're a bigger man than I am," Hikaru said. "You passed the Starfleet entrance exam on your first try at age fourteen. I was sixteen, and by the time I passed, I was seventeen. It took me three tries!"

"Not many pass on their first try," Pavel said. "You should be proud of yourself. Just for passing."

"But you, you're the wonderchild. You understand things no one else can. You, Pavel Andreievich Chekov, will do fantastic things for Starfleet.

"It's getting a bit late, Hikaru," Pavel said. "Perhaps we could-" Suddenly, his communicator beeped. "It is Casey. This will only be a moment. Hello?"

"Pavel? Hey… Um… I think I'm lost."

"Lost?"

"I… I don't really know. Some man asked me out for drinks, and… Now I feel strange…"

"Casey, are you drunk?"

"I think I might be," she said. "Can you come get me? I do not want to operate a vehicle like this… I don't know where I am, though. Big colorful bar."

"I know where you are, Casey," Pavel said. "I'll be right there." He tossed the communicator on his bed. "We've got to get her, she's drunk."

"Okay," Hikaru said. "She close by?"

"Yeah, really close," Pavel said. "She just doesn't know."

He and Hikaru walked over to the bar. The only bar any cadets ever went to, because it was conveniently close. Casey was sitting outside on a bench, waiting for them. Pavel couldn't even tell she was intoxicated. Until she tried to speak again.

"Pavel!" she said. "I didn't think you'd actually come here. Who's this?" She pointed to Hikaru.

"Casey, you have met Hikaru many times," Pavel said. "You do not remember him?"

"Oooh, now I remember," Casey said. "You're the sexy roommate. Except… I'm not allowed to call you that. Pavel thinks I might steal you away from him. But I won't so don't worry, Pasha. He's not my type."

"Okay," Hikaru said. "Let's go to Starfleet."

Hikaru carried Casey on his back, where she fell asleep. Hikaru didn't mind. She wasn't at all hard to carry. "Hikaru, I think we should take her to a doctor."

"Why? She's just had a bit too much to drink. How old is she, like, twenty-five?"

"Yes, but she is half Betazoid," Pavel said. "She matures slower than humans. She's really hardly any older than me."

"Alright," Hikaru said. "We'll take her to a doctor."

"You two? Again?"

"Yes. Well, not really. It's his friend. She's… She's had a bit too much, and she's quite young to be drinking. Pavel wants to make sure she'll be okay."

The doctor smiled a little at them. "Alright. This is Casey, yes? I see her around here a lot. Half Betazoid. Yeah, that'll make her mature slower. I'll keep her here for a while, then have a nurse take her back to her room. You boys can leave," McCoy said.

"Thank you," Pavel said.

Hikaru gave the doctor a smile and a nod.

"She is going to get in trouble," Pavel said. "Betazoids cannot drink that young."

"Yeah, but she's also half-human," Hikaru said. "That's gotta count for something."

"No," Pavel said, shaking his head. "When it comes to alcohol, they round up. She's got to be twenty-seven to drink on Earth."

"Well, they can't punish her too bad, Pavel. She'll be okay, let's just be glad she didn't get hurt," Hikaru said. "So… She calls me your sexy roommate, huh? You didn't tell me that."

"Maybe because I didn't want you to know," Pavel said. "You are mine. She cannot have you. Right?"

"Right," Hikaru said. "Only my Pavel."

They got back to Hikaru's room, and Pavel ran and jumped on his bed. "What do we do, now? It is rather late, don't you think?"

Hikaru smiled and jumped with him. "I don't know. What do you want to do?"

Suddenly, there was a knock at the door. "Who could that be?" Pavel asked.

Hikaru stopped jumping and ordered Pavel to do the same. "I don't know." The person knocked again. "Who would be looking for you this late?" Another knock. "They're pushy, whoever they are."

Pavel got up and answered the door. "Commander! Come in, please."

"Mister Sulu…" The commander said. "What are you doing in Mister Chekov's room?"

"Well, we have been… Romantically involved…"

"I must remind you, Cadet, that Mister Chekov is still not old enough for a sexual relationship," he said. "Engaging in sexual intercourse with him would result in-"

"Commander Spock, I wouldn't have sex with Pavel. He's… _Way_ too young. Why would you think I would do that?" Hikaru asked.

"I heard the bed rocking," Spock said, raising an eyebrow. "And also, when I first knocked, it took you almost two minutes to answer. And both of you have untidy hair."

"Oh. Yeah. Those are some pretty clear signs," Hikaru said. "No, but we weren't. Really."'

"Very well," Spock said. "Chekov, your friend Casey will be suspended from her next mission on a starship for underage drinking."

"But, Commander, it really wasn't her fault. She's never done it before, and-"

"Cadet, the decision is final. Good night, gentlemen." The Vulcan walked away with his hands loosely clasped behind his back.

"That is unfortunate," Pavel said. "She will not be happy about that."

"I know," Hikaru said. "But she's too young for drinking. Just like you. Except you don't get caught, that's the difference."

"Anyway," Pavel said. "What are we going to do for our birthdays, next week? I'm very excited."

They both sat down on the bed. "I don't know." He smiled. "I thought we could go out to dinner, and then…" He pulled two slips of paper from his pocket. "Maybe we could go see a show?" He handed a ticket to Pavel, whose eyes brightened. "I knew it was your favorite play, so I bought the best tickets as soon as I saw them."

"We are going to see Pippin! It is my favorite musical! It is a musical, by the way, not just a play… And we have the best seats!" He jumped on Hikaru and showered him with kisses. "Thank you! Thank you so much!" Suddenly, he stopped. "Oh no…"

"What's wrong?" Hikaru took his hand.

Pavel ran his hand through his hair. "Oh… Oh no…"

"What's wrong, sweetie? Are you alright?"

"Yes, I'm… Fine. It's just..." He sighed. "Now the present I got you seems… So small and plain."

"Pavel, you know you don't have to worry about it. I'll be happy as long as you're with me." He kissed Pavel on the forehead.

"Hikaru, you're so cheesy sometimes," Pavel said. "Do not ever change."

"I won't, as long as you don't," Hikaru said.

All of a sudden, the monitor made a loud beeping noise. Chekov skipped over to see who could _possibly_ need him. "It is my father!" He answered the call and stood in front of the screen. "Hello, Father!" Pavel suddenly looked sad. "What is wrong?"

Hikaru looked at the screen. Andrei Chekov was… _crying_? He had met Pavel's father only once, but he doesn't seem like the kind of man to cry for no good reason. He heard the man say something in Russian.

"Yes? What is it? What happened?" Pavel asked. Apparently his father knew English, but preferred not to speak it, because he replied in Russian every time. "Mother? What… Oh God… Is she alright? Is she… Dead?"

Hikaru saw Andrei shake his head and try to pull himself together to explain his situation to his young son. It took a few minutes for him to fully explain it to Pavel, but as soon as he got his point across, Pavel was crying too, and he heard him mutter something that must have been a swear, because Pavel's father shouted at him for it, in English, this time.

"_Hey!_ _Your mother would not appreciate that language, Pavel. We do not speak like that, whether you're here or in America! Do you understand?"_

Pavel shook his head. "What is the point, Father? How long has she been missing?"

"_A few days_," Andrei said. "_I thought she had maybe gone out with her sisters… But I called them and they have no idea_."

"When was the last time you saw her?"

"_She would always make my coffee before I go to work, remember? Three days ago, I went downstairs and… She wasn't there. There was a cup of coffee on the table, but… It was cold. She made the coffee, but for some reason she didn't wake me up…"_

"Oh no…"

"_Pavel… I have to talk to some of the detectives. Call me later, alright?"_

"Yes, Father."

Hikaru had no idea what the hell was going on. "What… What happened?"

Pavel had the most depressing look on his face, and he put his hand over his stomach. "I… Think I may be sick." He ran past Hikaru and locked himself in the bathroom.

"Okay," Hikaru said. He was really talking to himself. He waited on Pavel's bed. "I don't even know what happened. Poor baby." He walked up to the bathroom door after a long time and knocked softly. "Pasha?" There wasn't an answer. "Pasha, let me in, sweetie. You know I'll override the lock and come in anyway, so just answer me, please?" Nope. "Alright, fine."

Hikaru easily busted the lock. He really didn't know how to override anything. Why bother when you can just break it? He pushed the door open and sat on the floor next to Pavel.

"You gonna talk to me, Pavel?" Hikaru asked. "You don't have to if you don't want to." He pulled Pavel towards him and kissed the side of his face. "But I'd like to know what's going on so I can make you feel better, okay?"

Pavel shook his head. "I just wanna go to sleep."

"Okay," Hikaru said, pushing his hair back. He picked up the cadet and carried him to his bed. Pavel had obviously showed after being sick. He didn't know he reacted this badly to bad news. "Goodnight, Pasha."

"Where are you going?"

"My room. Want me to stay here?"

Pavel was visibly trembling in his bed. "Y-Yes please."

Hikaru laid next to him, and Pavel wouldn't leave his side. He was clinging to him as though his life depended on it. "Pavel, please tell me what happened?"

"I can't. I still feel sick. I… I'll tell you tomorrow morning, I promise," he said. Hikaru nodded and held Pavel close to him. He knew the ensign needed it. Pavel was very close with his parents. He couldn't imagine how upset he was now that something happened to his dear mother, who he talked about like she was a goddess. He'd met her, too. Over a video message. She was quite young. She was in her late thirties, Pavel told her. His parents had married very young. Of course, Andrei looked older than he was. But Pavel looked just like his mother.

She had the same curly hair, the same eyes, and the same smile. She called him her little Pasha, and that's when Sulu picked up the pet name. What could have possibly happened to her?

After Pavel fell asleep, Sulu could tell he was having a nightmare. He gently shook him, trying to wake him up, but Pavel started to panic. He was screaming and he scratched Hikaru's face so hard he actually drew blood.

"Pavel, wake up! It's me!" He held Pavel firmly against his chest, and Pavel eventually snapped out of it and began to cry. "I know. It's okay. No one's going to hurt you."

Pavel looked at Hikaru's bleeding cheek. "Did I scratch you?"

"A little. It's fine, though," Hikaru said. "Go to sleep, sweetie."

"Hikaru…"

"Yes?"

"I think… I think I will go to Russia for a few days. Just to see my family. It would be wrong not to."

"Okay," Hikaru said. "Whatever you think is best." He realized that this might mean not being able to spend his birthday with Pavel, but none of that mattered if Pavel was unhappy.

"And Hikaru," Pavel said. "I want you to come with me." Hikaru was a little shocked. "I promise we'll be back by the time your birthday comes around. Just for a few days. I haven't seen them in so long…"

"Have you told your father about us?"

"No…" Pavel said. "But he'll like you a lot, don't worry about it. You do not have to be afraid of my family."

"I don't know, your dad alone looks like he could kill me pretty easily," Hikaru said.

"Oh, no. He's great. He'll like you," Pavel said, drumming his fingers on Hikaru's chest. "He likes almost everyone I like. My cousins will like you, too. They're your age. A little older, perhaps."

"Almost everyone? _Cousins?_ Pavel, what else do you not tell me about your family?"

"My cousins are wonderful. When I was a kid, they'd scare the kids who were mean to me so they wouldn't bother me anymore. They lived with us after their parents died."

"What happened?"

"Shuttlecraft explosion," Pavel said. "They worked off-planet, so my cousins stayed with us a lot anyway. I was only six when it happened. Viktor was ten, and Anton was thirteen."

"That's terrible," Hikaru said. "Don't think about the bad stuff, think of good stuff that'll make you have good dreams. Like Pippin."

"I like that show. It is a bit dark, but funny, too. And every time I see it, I always know the words to the songs so I'm singing them the whole time after. You'll be singing them too, this time."

"I bet I will. I looked up some of the songs, very catchy," Hikaru said. "_Rivers belong where they can ramble… Eagles belong where they can fly…"_

"You know the words already?"

"Yeah!" Hikaru jumped up on the bed. "_I've got to be where my spirit can run free! Gotta find my corner… Of the sky!"_

Pavel clapped. "You're a very good singer. You're my Pippin."

Hikaru took a bow and sat back down on the bed. "And you're my Catherine."

Pavel giggled and kissed his cheek. "Always." He let himself be pulled by Hikaru so his entire body was on top of him. "Are you really okay with coming to Russia for a few days?"

"Of course," Hikaru said. "I could use a vacation."

"Eh… It's pretty cold this time of year…" Pavel said. "Like, very cold. Do you have a snow coat?"

"What? Of course I don't! We're in San Francisco, it gets cold but not _snow in early October_ cold!" Hikaru said. "You know, I'll be fine. As long as you're happy and with your family, I'll be happy."

"Maybe one day we could be a family," Pavel said. "I mean, I'm not trying to rush things, it's just… It's something I like to think about."

"Really? Tell me more, then," Hikaru said.

"I can picture us in, like, five years… We would get married, and adopt little babies. A boy and a girl, because you wanted a boy to teach fencing to, and I wanted a girl to dress up. And they would be smart and beautiful and they'd be just like us…"

Hikaru listened to Pavel's fantasy. It could very well happen. He had to admit, it did sound lovely. Him and Pavel and two little babies. That would be cute. Maybe instead of adopting, they could get a surrogate mother. It would be nice to have a kid that was actually a part of him. Plus, if Pavel had a kid, it would probably be the most adorable thing since… Well… Pavel. Just imagining a tiny little Pavel was making him blush.

"…And they'd speak Russian."

"What?"

"Our children, they would speak Russian. For sure."

Hikaru sat up and smiled. "Now, that's not fair. Only one of us will understand them! They'll learn English _first_, then you can teach them whatever they want. If they speak English, they'll be able to talk to both of us."

"Well, what if you learned Russian?" Pavel suggested.

"Woah, woah, I can barely keep up with English," Hikaru said. "I know a few things in Russian, anyway. They're dirty, but they're still Russian. Plus, like you said, we're not… _Russian_ things." He laughed at his own joke. "Get it? Because Russian sounds like rushin'?"

"I get it. And I know some dirty English things, too," Pavel said, crossing his arms.

"Oh, yeah? Like what?"

Pavel closed his eyes. "I'm underage. You'll have to wait a year."

"Ah, why do you have to be so young?! You need to grow up faster," Hikaru said. "It's getting really late now, so go to sleep. I've got to get up early and buy _snow clothes_."


	10. Chapter 10 - More Russian Vodka

Four days in Russia. Sulu hadn't actually gone shopping for any sort of snow clothes or whatever, and he was starting to regret it. Checking the weather for Saint Petersburg, the high temperature was in the fifties, and the low was in the thirties. It wasn't even halfway through October yet! This is why Pavel sunburns so easily.

"The shuttle leaves in an hour. Are you all packed?" Pavel asked. His spirits were dampened at the thought of his family.

"You didn't tell me what happened to your mother. You said you'd tell me this morning," Hikaru said. "I want to know so I can make you feel better."

Pavel sighed. "She's gone missing. No one can find her. She never leaves without telling my father. He said… She made his coffee, and something happened before she could wake him up. It was cold by the time he woke up on his own." He shook his head. "I just wish… I knew what happened to her. No matter what it is, if I knew, it would make me feel better."

Hikaru hugged him. "You'll feel better when you're with your family, right? Because they love you, just like I do. And they're going to find your mother, no matter what."

"What if she's dead? What if someone killed her?" Pavel said, his face on Hikaru's shirt. "What if… She died painfully, or slowly, or…"

"Shh," Hikaru kissed his forehead. "You're going to get yourself all worked up about this. She's not dead. And they're going to find her, okay?"

Pavel nodded, and Hikaru grabbed the bag of his things. "Ready to go?"

"Yep."

"You'll like my dad. He always wakes up and starts drinking, though. He isn't an alcoholic, it's just how he is. Oh! And wait until you see my father's gun collection. I know you enjoy ancient weaponry and stuff. My dad's the best with guns."

"Oh, great. Guns and alcohol, what can go wrong?"

On the shuttle, every time there was a bump or a noise, Pavel would gasp and grab onto the seat, which was probably every forty-five seconds, and it wasn't helping that Hikaru was singing "_Back in the U.S.S.R"_ for the 10,000th time today.

"Calm down, it's turbulence," Hikaru said.

"I know," Pavel said, trying to relax. "But… My aunt and uncle died in a shuttlecraft. And… And these things are scary. I mean, we're thousands of meters in the air, and of one thing goes wrong, we crash, we explode, we suffocate…" He groaned and held his stomach.

"Please tell me you're not going to be sick."

"I'm sorry, I have a nervous stomach," Pavel said, leaning back, his nails digging into the armrests. "That's why I could never be a captain. I'm not good at making important decisions at the last minute." The Starfleet officer who was in charge offered Pavel a paper bag, which he accepted.

"You could be a captain." He kissed Pavel's cheek. "You'll be a great captain one day. Now stop worrying, and relax. We'll land in fifteen minutes."

Pavel nodded and relaxed a bit, thinking less about how he could die in a fiery explosion and more about how he was going to see his loving family with his amazing boyfriend.

When they finally landed, they had to rent a hovercraft and drive another forty-five minutes to get to Pavel's house. Hikaru, of course, was the driver, while Pavel sat in the passenger seat. It was fully reclined, so he wasn't even really sitting.

Pavel sighed. "This is boring. Can you at least play music?"

"Sure," Hikaru said. "Get the music player from my bag."

Pavel looked through his bag. "Where is it?"

"I forget which pocket it's in, just look through all of them," Hikaru said. "No looking at my underwear, put that down. There it is." He grabbed the music player and synced it to the craft's speakers.

"Oh, no… Not this song again," Pavel said.

"_Well, flew in from Miami Beach BOAC, didn't get to bed last night! On the way the paper bag was on my knee, man, I had a dreadful flight. I'm back in the U.S.S.R!"_

"Hey, that kinda relates to you, Pavel. We were up talking all last night, you didn't have a good time on the flight here, and now we're in Russia!"

"Woo hoo," Pavel said. "Please, any other song but this? I had to listen to you singing it all the way here…"

"I thought you said you liked my singing?" Hikaru said.

"Yes, but this is too much," Pavel said. "Any other song."

Hikaru sighed and shuffled the songs. There was a pause when Hikaru saw what song it was, but pressed the 'play' button anyway. In seconds, "_Why Don't We Do It In the Road?"_ by _The Beatles_ was blaring out of the speakers, and Hikaru knew all the words to that song, too. Of course, there weren't too many words, anyway.

Pavel gave Hikaru a questioning look. "Why don't we do _what_ in the road?"

"You should be watching the road. I'll handle the music," Pavel said.

"No, don't touch! The driver picks the music, that's the rule," Hikaru said. "I like this song. It's by a group called _Queen_. I forget the name, though. We're almost there."

"I know," Pavel said. "I remember this road. We're only a few blocks away."

Soon, Pavel was shouting for him to stop, and running out of the craft to his front door.

"Don't worry, Pavel, I'll just get all these bags for you," Hikaru said, getting out and carrying all the bags from the back. By the time he got to where Pavel was, the door was opening, and a very big man answered.

"Anton!" Pavel cried, jumping up and hugging him. He spoke in super-fast Russian to him, and the other man laughed.

"Who's this?" he asked. He sounded like an older version of Pavel with a much deeper voice.

Before Pavel could answer, his father was at the door as well. "Pasha! What are you standing in the cold for, get in here!"

"It isn't that cold," Pavel said.

"_Damn,"_ Hikaru thought. He was freezing.

"Oh," Andrei said. "I thought you would've adapted to that warm California temperature, no?" He looked at Hikaru, who was trying not to shiver. "And you brought a friend, too."

"Um, not exactly…" Pavel said. "He is my… My boyfriend. My _konfetka_."

Andrei looked shocked, his eyes darting between Pavel and Hikaru. For a moment, Hikaru thought he might pass out. Then, Andrei smiled. "Good for you, Pasha. As long as he treats you good."

"He does, Papa," Pavel said. "Do you have a spare room for us?"

"You sleep together?"

"Da."

"There's your old room. We haven't really changed it since you left," Anton said. "I'm going to go get Viktor. He's out, but he'll love to see you."

"Just remember, these walls are not soundproof, Pavel. If you're going to-"

"Papa! I'm underage!" Pavel said. "Hikaru knows better. He is very respectful."

"He'd better be," Andrei said. "Go on to your room now, Pavel. Ah, what's his name again?"

"Hikaru Sulu," Hikaru said, shaking Andrei's hand. "Wonderful to meet you, sir."

"Come on, Hiki!" Pavel pulled Hikaru by his shirt collar to his room. "My father was lying. The walls here are _very_ soundproof."

"Pavel, I don't know what you're implying, but that doesn't change the fact that you're underage," Hikaru said. "Plus, I'm really tired. What time was in in San Francisco, six?"

"Yes. And by the time we got here, it was three, and now it's four-thirty."

"Yep," Hikaru said. "When was the last time you were in this room?"

"Before we were together. When I was fifteen," Pavel said. "My cousin Anton doesn't live here, by the way. He's just staying here while everything is sorted out."

"Yeah," Hikaru said. "Like I said, everything'll be fine, trust me."

They spent the next hour and a half looking through old photo albums that Pavel had shoved over in the corner of his room, and Hikaru was practically squealing over his baby pictures.

"Oh my gosh! You look the same now as you did when you were three!" He said, holding up a photo of little smiling Pavel. "I'm tired," Hikaru said. "I'm gonna take a nap."

"Sleep with me, please?" Pavel asked. Hikaru didn't have to think twice and jumped up on his bed next to him. They were asleep for barely an hour when Andrei knocked on the door and woke them up.

"You boys decent?"

Pavel groaned. "Papa, I'm too young to have sex. Yes, we're decent."

Pavel's dad opened the door and smiled. "Oh. Okay. Well, dinner's ready."

"Ooh, good," Pavel said. "Come on, Hikaru!" He nearly jumped out of bed and pulled Hikaru's hand to try and get him out, too. "Come on, Hiki! I'm starving!"

Hikaru groaned. "I wanna sleeeep."

"Well, it's rude to skip dinner. Come on. You're getting up and eating even if I've got to carry you! Er… Which seems highly likely right now…"

"Alright, let's go, Pasha."

After dinner, Pavel's cousins decided to mess with Hikaru and trick him into getting himself drunk. Pavel, who was sitting across from Hikaru at the table, tried to warn him, but it didn't work.

"Hikaru, Pavel here told us you're a lightweight," Anton said. "Wanna prove him wrong?" He slid a bottle of vodka towards him.

"Ah, I don't really drink this stuff. Last time I did, I ended up kissing Pavel unintentionally, and that's really how this whole thing started," Hikaru said.

Andrei had gone to talk to local authorities about where his wife could've been before she disappeared, so Hikaru was alone in a house full of sneaky little Chekovs.

"Come on, Hikaru," Viktor said. He sounded a lot like Pavel. "It's nothing, really. Pavel's a lightweight, and even he can handle it."

"_Pavel_ is a lightweight? That's a new one."

"Oh, yeah," Anton said. "Our _babushka_ can drink him under the table."

"That's a lie!" Pavel said, crossing his arms.

"Well…" Hikaru said, hesitantly.

"Come on! Drinking contest! Me against Pavel's boy toy!"

Hikaru smiled and sat up straight. "Alright, you're on!" Anton and Viktor clapped and Pavel kicked Hikaru in the shins. "Ow! Pavel!"

"Stupid! You are a lightweight!" Pavel said. "You can't drink this stuff!"

"Relax, Pasha," Viktor said. "It should be quick.

Many shots later, Pavel was half-carrying Hikaru back to his room, surprised that Hikaru lasted as long as he did.

"You guys are jerks!" Pavel shouted. "He's _mine_ to play with, you get your own!"

"Pavel, where we goin'?" Hikaru asked. "We goin' to sleep?" He stood up before they were out of Anton and Viktor's sight and grabbed Pavel's face, kissing his nose. "You've got such a cute face. Like a baby's face. It makes you seem so innocent."

"Alright, Hikaru, off to bed, now…"

"Why?" Hikaru asked. He was still a strong guy, even drunk. Pavel couldn't push him. He looked at Pavel's cousins. "I like these guys. They're nice. Let's stay here with them."

Pavel shot his cousins an unamused look. "Hikaru, do you even know their names?"

"Well, there's…" His eyes darted between Pavel, Anton, and Viktor. "There's you - you're Pavel, and then… There's the taller one, and the really loud one…"

Anton gave an amused sigh while Viktor burst out laughing. "Okay, time for bed."

"We shoulda done this a long time ago, Pavel," Hikaru said. "I mean… You didn't tell me your whole family was as hot as you are. That's not very fair."

Pavel blinked as Hikaru's eyes went out of focus, then he snapped back to the way he was.

Hikaru smiled. "Hello, Pasha," he said, grabbing onto him. He rested his head on Pavel's shoulder. "I'm tired."

"I know you are," Pavel said. "Wanna go back to my room so we can go to sleep?"

"Yeah," Hikaru said. "I'm tired."

"Okay, come on," Pavel said, pulling him along by his arm. He got to his room, then got under the blankets with Hikaru. "Go on, go to sleep."

Hikaru's face was pressed against Pavel's, and Hikaru was trying to kiss him, but was having a hard time reaching his lips, and didn't want to sit up any further. Eventually, he grabbed Pavel's' face and turned it towards him. "Better," he said.

"Hikaru, you've gotta let me sleep," Pavel said. "Please take your hand off my face."

Hikaru complied with Pavel's demand, but shifted his position so he was lying horizontally on his back, and on top of Pavel. "Okay, Pasha. G'night."

Viktor decided to peek through Pavel's door and see Hikaru lying on top of Pavel and Pavel's hand on his face. He noticed Viktor and narrowed his eyes. "I don't know what your plan was, but I think it worked." Viktor tried to contain his laughter and closed the door. "Oh, Hikaru. You can never trust Anton and Viktor. Especially Viktor."

Hikaru shifted uncomfortably on top of him. "Your sweater's itchy. It's gonna scratch my face."

"Your face isn't even on my sweater. You're on your back," Pavel said.

"Well, if I put my face on it, it'll probably scratch it, so you shouldn't have it on. Just in case I do that," Hikaru said. "Please."

"No."

"But it's scratching my back. It hurts," Hikaru said.

"Then how about you… Hey, where is your shirt?" Pavel asked.

"I don't know. I think I left it in the kitchen," Hikaru said. "The loud one might have taken it and done something… I don't remember." He moved back next to Pavel. "It's still scratchy when I'm over here."

Pavel groaned, sat up, and took off the sweater he was wearing. He got up and moved to his bag and pulled out a sweatshirt. On the front it read _Starfleet Academy Flight Club_ in bold letters.

"Starfleet… Academy… What does that say?"

"Starfleet Academy Flight Club," Pavel said.

"You're in the flight club? That's dangerous," Hikaru said. "I heard a few cadets were killed a while ago…"

"No, I'm not in the flight club," Pavel said. "Casey gave this to me when I didn't have any sweatshirts. She's the captain of the flight team. And, yeah, it is dangerous. But whenever she goes to practice, she always comes back perfectly fine, so I try not to worry."

"Yeah," Hikaru said, climbing back on top of Pavel. "I like her. She's very nice to you."

"Good," Pavel said, pulling Hikaru up higher on him. "I'm glad you like her."

Without any hesitation, Hikaru kissed him on the mouth. "Yeah," he said. He slid his hands under the sweatshirt, which he was quite glad he convinced Pavel to change into, because it was more comfortable than an itchy sweater, warmer than not having a shirt, and nice and roomy so he could feel any part of him he wanted.

"Alright, Hiki, you've had too much to drink tonight. You should sleep it off while you can," Pavel said. "Come on, sleepy time."

Hikaru looked up at him for a moment. "Boop."

"Ow!" Pavel pushed his hand from under his sweatshirt. "Hikaru… No pinching!"

"Biting?"

"No. _Sleeping_."

"No sleeping?"

"No!"

"Yes, no sleeping?"

"Oh my God…"

"I'm too tired to keep this conversation going," Hikaru said. He squeezed between Pavel and the wall and Pavel moved over, only to have Hikaru pushing against him, nearly forcing him off his own bed.

Pavel sighed, but wrapped his arms around Hikaru nonetheless. He was just a big, stupid child sometimes. "You know, if we get married, I'm going to have a lot of trouble making sure you behave."

"Married," Hikaru said.

"Yeah. Do you think that could happen?"

"Yeah," Hikaru said. He sat up. "Will you marry me?" Pavel giggled to himself. This man had no idea what he was saying. Hikaru giggled too, then lightly hit Pavel's chest. "No, really! I wanna get married. Then we'll have ten kids."

"Ten? That's a bit much," Pavel said. "We'll talk about it in the morning, alright? Go to sleep, sweetie."

"Kay. Sweetie."

Hikaru woke up _way_ later than usual. Around one-thirty. Pavel was sitting at his desk, his head in his hands. "Pavel…?"

Pavel turned around in his chair. "Oh, good, you're awake. I was starting to worry about you." There were placed on his cheeks where streaks from tears had dried.

"I'm fine. Something happened to you, I see," Hikaru said. He wanted to get up, but was too afraid he'd be sick. "Come here and tell me what's wrong." He held his arms out to Pavel, and and the cadet laid next to him so he could wrap his arms around him.

"It's my father," Pavel said.

"Is he okay?"

"Better than I thought he would be. But he's also a suspect of her disappearance," Pavel said. "We had an argument this morning. He would like you and I to leave today."

"But… We haven't even been here one day!" Hikaru said, louder than he should have. His head was already pounding. "The chances of finding your mother are still very good."

"I know, and I wanna be here when she comes home," Pavel said, burying his face in his sweatshirt. "I miss her so much."

Hikaru sat up carefully. "Do you think I could talk to your dad?"

Pavel raised his eyebrows. _Bold move_. "I guess. He seemed to like you."

"Okay," Hikaru said. "I'm gonna go talk to him right now." He stood up and got a nervous look on his face. "Okay, so I might throw up, but then I'll talk to him."

Before Pavel could make a smart remark, Hikaru had dashed out of his room. "_What a lightweight_," he muttered to himself in Russian.

Pavel knocked on the bathroom door after fifteen minutes.

"Hiki? Are you alright?" he called. He turned around and saw Viktor smiling at him. "This is your fault."

"I know," Viktor said. "Did you have a good time with him last night, though?" He wiggled his eyebrows.

"No! And now he's miserable!" Pavel said. The door opened and Hikaru stepped out. "Are you okay?"

"Yeah, I'm good," Hikaru said. He looked up at Viktor. "Hey."

Viktor just nodded and walked back into his room.

Pavel kissed Hikaru's cheek. "I'm sorry about him. He loves to cause trouble. But you did accept the challenge. Which was really stupid of you, by the way."

"Yeah," Hikaru said. "I know. Don't really know what I was thinking, there. To accept a drinking challenge from a Russian."

"You should probably rest," Pavel said.

"After I talk with your dad. I'm gonna make sure you get to stay your extra few days."

"What… What if she's not back by then?" Pavel asked. "We'll have to go back…"

"Well, if that does happen, then when she _does_ come back, we'll be on the first shuttle here to see her," Hikaru said. "I'll fix all this up, don't worry. We worry about things when we need to, not before that."

Pavel nodded. "Okay. Should I come with you with my father and all…"

"Nah, I got this! If he's good with me being your boyfriend, he'll be good talking one-on-one. Besides, he thought we were moving way faster than we actually are in this relationship. He… He thought we were having _sex!_ That's not even legal in America! I mean, I don't know Russian laws, but… I'm pretty sure the only difference here is you start drinking at a younger age," Hikaru said.

Pavel thought for a moment, then nodded. "Yes, I think that is the only difference."

"Okay, so go do… Whatever it is you do when I'm not around, and I'll be right there." He kissed Pavel's forehead, causing his face to redden, and walked off to the kitchen area where Andrei was usually at the table. "Hey, Pav? Where's your dad? Wasn't he just right here talking with the cops?"

"Yes…" Pavel said, walking up behind him. "Maybe he went back to the station with them. You two can talk when he gets back." Pavel grabbed a light jacket. "I'm going for a walk. Will you come with me?"

"Yeah," Hikaru said, quickly. He really didn't want to be out in this cold weather, but it was either that, or stay in a strange house with Pavel's evil cousin.

As soon as they stepped outside, Hikaru wished that Pavel had suggested something else. By his standards, it was way too cold. "Hikaru," Pavel said. "I have a sweater for you. I don't want you getting sick from the cold."

"No, I'm good."

"That jacket is too light. You put this on right now, Hikaru," Pavel said.

"It's gonna look stupid," Hikaru muttered.

Pavel crossed his arms. "Do I look stupid? I am wearing a sweater."

Hikaru sighed. "Well, that's way different, Pavel!" he said. "You're, like, a thousand times more adorable than I am. Plus, even though you're seventeen, you've got a little angel face."

"I don't care! Put it on!"

"Okay, okay," Hikaru said. "Don't get your little Russian panties in a bunch." He pulled the garment over his head. "It looks ridiculous. It's way too big."

"Yes," Pavel said. "But you're nice and warm now, right?"

"Yes, I am," Hikaru said. "Thank you."

"You are very welcome," Pavel said. "And I do not wear panties! You know very well that I wear men's underwear!"

Hikaru smiled. "It's an expression," he said. "But if you did wear them, it'd be super hot. Just FYI."

Pavel lead Hikaru to an old park. There weren't any children on it, since the houses were so far apart from each other, none of the children came to play on the playground on weekends since it was so far away. Pavel ran over to the swingset and sat on the second swing from the end. "Can you push me on the swings, Hikaru?"

"Pavel, I know for a fact that you know how to pump your legs on a swingset," Hikaru said. "And I am totally not pushing you. You're not five."

"I am seventeen. And I do not know how to do the leg pumping. Please?"

"Fine," Hikaru said. "Just for a little while, then you're on your own, okie dokie?"

"Yes, Hiki, hurry up! I'll be eighteen by the time you get to it!" Pavel whined.

"You may be eighteen by then, but you whine like a three year old," Hikaru said. He pushed him for a few minutes and was thankful there wasn't anyone else around to see it. "This looks stupid."

"I don't care," Pavel said, jumping off the swing.

"Why did you do that?!" Hikaru said. Pavel walked over to him and looked up. "What's wrong?"

"I was talking to Anton earlier," Pavel said. "He told me that now… Now that it's been three days, the chances of my mother being found alive are less than nine percent. She… She could've been kidnapped and sold… Into that horrible slave system run by those…"

"Shh, don't think about that," Hikaru said. "Think about how great it will be when she _is_ found. She'll walk through the door and you'll be so happy she's back. But for now, we have to be strong, okay? Very strong. Stronger than you think you can be. If we are, it'll be a lot easier."

Pavel didn't say anything, just let Hikaru hold him there for a moment, shielding him from the cold.

"Do you wanna go get coffee or something? I'm way too cold out here," Hikaru said. "Do you even drink coffee? I've never really seen you in the morning for very long."

"No, I don't like coffee," Pavel said, looking at Hikaru and smiling. "But I like hot chocolate, and I know the best place for it."

They sat back on the bench near the park after Pavel was completely satisfied with his hot chocolate. There was a lot of whipped cream on top of it, and Pavel had most of it on his nose and lips.

"It is not usually this cold here," Pavel said. All of a sudden, he jumped up and smiled. "Did I just see what I think I saw?" He paused for a moment. "I did! It's snowing, look!"

Hikaru didn't see any at first, but he started to notice the small flakes falling down from the sky. As he watched, they got bigger, and started to cover the ground with a thin white blanket. He watched the bits of white stick in Pavel's hair, then melt from his heat. "Pavel, you need to put your hat on, you'll get sick."

"Hats are nonsense!"

"Hats are a lot of sense, they keep you from getting sick in the wintertime. Or in this case, the fall," Hikaru said. Pavel walked over to him and went to pick up his hat, then quickly snatched Hikaru's from his head. "Hey! You give that back, I'm not getting sick, too!"

Pavel ran around the park with Hikaru chasing him. Hikaru almost caught him many times, not realizing that Pavel was humoring him. He was much faster than him, and there wasn't even a slight possibility that he would catch him. He finally slowed down enough for Hikaru to catch him. But when he tried to stop, he tripped and knocked Pavel over.

While he was lying on top of Pavel, he took his hat back, and pulled Pavel's hat onto his head. "There. Now you'll be fine," he said. He kissed Pavel, and decided to stay lying there.

"Hikaru, you're crushing me," Pavel said.

"First of all, no I'm not, I'm not even leaning on you, my legs are on the ground, I'm pretty much hovering over you. Second of all, are you calling me fat?"

"No, but-"

"But?!" Hikaru grabbed him and flipped over so Pavel was on top now. "There. Now _you_ get to crush _me_. And for the record, I'm only heavy because I'm all muscle." Pavel kissed him and looked right into his eyes. Hikaru hated when he did that. It meant he was either going to cry, or make him feel bad about something. "What's that look for?"

"Nothing," Pavel said. He felt the weight of snow gathering on his back, and go up to shake it off, then held his hand out to help Hikaru up.

"Are you sure I'm not too heavy?" Hikaru said, grabbing onto his hand. Pavel pulled him up and made a face at him. "See? I'm not all that bad. Now what was that face for? I know that face, and I hate it."

"I just… I love the way you look with snow in your eyelashes," Pavel said. "The contrast of your dark hair and the white snow… It's perfect to me."

Hikaru looked down, and his cheeks turned pink. "Thanks, Pavel." He took the Russian's hand and walked back to the bench. Pavel stood up on it and climbed onto Hikaru's back. "Okay, back to your house, then? Come on, let's go. I be I can carry you all the way there."

"How long has it been since you've been out in the snow?" Pavel asked. "Like, it doesn't snow very much there."

"The last time it snowed, I was… Seven? No, I was six. I was outside from when I woke up 'till after dinner," Hikaru said. "In fact, maybe I'll show you the videos later. My mom loved to take videos of me when I was little. There has to be a hundred of them."

"Oh! I bet you were so cute when you were little!" Pavel said. "I _have_ to see those videos! I just have to! I want to see what you looked like when you were small."

"Oh, no you don't," Hikaru said. "I was fat."

"Aww! That's so cute!" Pavel said. He pinched Hikaru's cheek. "My Hikaru was chubby."

"No, I wasn't chubby, I was just fat. Like, very," Hikaru said. "I waddled like a duck. I was like that until I was like, eleven. I have no idea why I was like that, I just was. I'm not anymore, though. Right?"

"Right," Pavel said. "Can you put me down?"

"What? I'm not comfortable enough anymore?" Hikaru asked.

Pavel kissed the side of his head. "Pleeeeease? I wanna walk."

"Okie dokie," Hikaru said, carefully putting him back down. "I forget, is your house close by here? I'm freezing."

"Yeah," Pavel said, pointing. "Right on that street right there." Suddenly, an ambulance with a blaring siren rushed down the street, followed by two cop cars. "What's that for?"

"Maybe there's a fire," Hikaru said.

"No, our house is new. It can't catch on fire. Plus, there's no firemen," Pavel said. He raced ahead down the street. "Come on! Hurry!"

Hikaru sprinted after him, still unable to keep up. When he got to their house, he saw Anton and Viktor sitting outside.

"Hey, what happened?" Hikaru asked.

"Andrei's gone," Viktor said. "He left a note…"

"He said…" Anton paused, debating whether he should tell him or not. "He said your mother's not coming back alive. He said he has a feeling what happened, but… It doesn't say what."

"Both my parents." Pavel said. He sat in the grass with his family. "Both gone."

Hikaru felt useless because he had no idea how to resolve the situation and he knew Pavel wanted to talk to his family about this rather than him, but to his surprise, the ensign climbed into his lap, waiting to be held and told it's okay. "I think it would be best if we went back to California soon," Hikaru said.

Pavel nodded. "Yes. Tomorrow night, we can leave."

"Okay," Hikaru said, cradling Pavel like a baby until he fell asleep in his arms. "Anton, are there any other details to this case?"

"The investigators insisted on searching our father's room and other parts of the house. They found some traces of blood. Don't tell Pasha, though. He's got enough to worry about," Anton said.

Hikaru nodded and wanted to thank Anton for being such a good cousin to Pavel. It made Hikaru wish that _he_ had been born with an older brother, or at least a cousin. Pavel sometimes called Viktor and Anton his brothers since they had called Andrei their father.

Hikaru just wanted all the madness to end.

The next evening, Hikaru carried Pavel's bag downstairs and they were off again to get the first shuttle they could to San Francisco. "What do you keep in this tiny backpack of yours, bars of gold?!"

"No," Pavel said. "And none of your business."

"Pavel, Viktor, why don't you wait outside?" Anton said. "I wanna talk to this one."

"Anton," Pavel said. "Do not scare him."

"I will make no promises," Anton said. Once the two were outside, Anton turned to Hikaru. He was shorter than him, but definitely more built. "When you first got here, I thought to myself, "_I'm going to hate this American fool_." Thought you were some kid who just like to hook up with guys, because there _are_ a few stereotypes about Americans here, and stereotypes exist for a reason."

Hikaru shook his head. "No, I would never."

"Good. Because I don't hate you, and you aren't a fool. You're quite smart, and I certainly hope you continue to make Pavel so happy."

"I will, I hope," Hikaru said. "As long as he doesn't get sick of me."

"He doesn't do that. Once he's attached to you, he'll never let you go."

"That's good to know. I hope I never lose him. He's everything to me. You know how that works?"

"Yeah, I do," Anton said. "I had a girlfriend. Alessandra. A goddess, that woman. I gave her everything. And she left. I begged her not to go, but she just left me. Don't be that person to Pavel, alright?"

"Alright," Hikaru said. He shook his hand as firmly as he could, then walked back to where Pavel stood. "Come on, Pasha. We can't be late. If we miss the shuttle, the next one isn't for three more hours."

They missed the shuttle. Sitting in the station, Pavel was quiet. Usually, he'd try to avoid any forms of silence by blurting out a random fact that had to do with whatever the situation was. Today he was quiet.

"You know, my father isn't missing," he finally said. "I know where he went."

"Where did he go?" Hikaru asked, his arm around his shoulders, stroking the side of his face.

"He went to go bring my mother home," Pavel said. "I knew he'd try to find her. He knows what's going on, he just won't tell us because he doesn't want my brothers and I to worry."

"How come you call them your cousins sometimes, and your brothers other times?"

"Because, they're technically both. Biologically, they're my cousins. But my parents adopted them when their parents were killed, so they're also my brothers."

"You think you'll see your dad again?"

"Yeah," Pavel said. "Real soon. He'll find her, and then come right back. He always comes back."

"Everything happens for a reason, you've got to trust me on that," Hikaru said. "No matter what anyone says, things always happen for a reason."


End file.
